Palmer's Revenge
by Shipper Utopia
Summary: Palmer once again plots revenge against Harm. Harm/Mac


He got the call late that night. "Rabb."  
  
"Harm." A soft female voice said on the other end of the line.  
  
He recognized the tone hidden in her voice, audible only to him. "What happened?"  
  
"Leavenworth just called. Uncle Matt's in the infirmary. Harm, I need you."  
  
"I'll be there in five minutes."  
  
Exactly five minutes later, he knocked on her door and she opened it, hugging him. Her eyes were red and he could tell that she'd been crying. "How is he? What did they tell you?" He asked, walking into the room and closing the door, not letting her go.  
  
"They think he had a heart attack."  
  
He wiped the tears from her eyes. "He'll be all right, Mac. He'll be all right." Hours later, Mac was sitting beside her still-sleeping uncle while Harm stood in the hallway, talking to the warden. "Shouldn't he be awake by now?"  
  
"The doctors made a mistake at first. It wasn't a heart attack; he was poisoned. We got all the drugs out of his system. It was staged to look like a heart attack; if they'd given him anymore, if we had found him a little later, he'd be dead."  
  
Harm cast a glance at Mac. "How could something like that happen?"  
  
"I don't know, but we're investigating."  
  
"I'd like to help."  
  
The warden nodded and said, "Of course. First thing in the morning." Harm turned and went back into the room. Mac had stopped crying, but her eyes were red and she was holding Matt's hand as if she was terrified to let go.  
  
"Mac, he'll be all right."  
  
"What did the warden say?" She asked, looking back at him, but not letting go of Matt's hand.  
  
"He was poisoned."  
  
"What? How? Why would someone want to kill him?" Her voice still sounded shaken and a little frightened, almost like the teenager that Matt had rescued fourteen years before.  
  
"They're investigating now; I'm going to help them in the morning."  
  
"Palmer. Where's Palmer?" Clark Palmer, Harm's nemesis, had been sentenced to Leavenworth four times: once after kidnapping Harm, twice after trying to kill one of Harm's girlfriends, and once after trying to kill Harm as well as others.  
  
"I'll check on him." He looked back at Matt before he left. He'd met Matt O'Hara six years before, at Red Rock Mesa, and the two men had almost instantly formed an alliance. Harm had defended him in court and gotten a somewhat reduced sentence, Matt and Harm both took care of Mac whenever she needed them.  
  
A little while later, Matt opened his eyes. "Sarah?"  
  
"It's all right, Uncle Matt. Harm and I are here." He smiled. "I love you, Uncle Matt." Her family never said that to each other, but he squeezed her hand.  
  
"My Sarah."  
  
She had fallen asleep again, still holding his hand, when the orderly came in, locking the door behind him. She heard the door lock and opened her eyes to see the twisted look on Clark Palmer's face and her uncle's angry look at Palmer. "Palmer." She said quietly.  
  
"Good to see you again, Mac. I'm sorry about Brumby. I sincerely hope my wedding present didn't have anything to do with you two breaking up." He'd mailed her a bloody knife in one of her wedding presents.  
  
"Mac?" Matt asked. "You know Palmer?"  
  
"Only too well." She retorted. "Harm and I'll explain later."  
  
"You'll have to do that explanation without him." He told her. "I'm afraid the two of you will have a very tragic accident and the young commander, unable to save the woman he loves and the man he respects, will kill himself."  
  
"You wish." She said angrily.  
  
"That's probably what Jordan would have said. Oh, I meant to offer condolences to the Commander. I heard that she was murdered after our last visit."  
  
Harm stood in the warden's office. "What do you mean he escaped? How could you let that happen again?" He paused, but not long enough for the other man to respond. "I've got to get back to them." Before he could leave the room, a guard ran in.  
  
"Warden, the room where O'Hara is has been locked; the guard was killed."  
  
"No." Harm began to run back to the infirmary where there were already guards standing outside. "There's got to be another way in there."  
  
"Break down the door." The warden told two of the guards. By the time they got the door open, Matt, Mac, and Palmer were all gone.  
  
"Where the hell are you?" Admiral Chegwidden yelled into the phone.  
  
"Leavenworth, sir. I'm sorry we didn't tell you, but there was no time."  
  
"What happened?" The Admiral asked, his voice dropping to a normal tone.  
  
"Mac got a call last night. Matt was poisoned. Palmer's missing, along with them."  
  
The Admiral closed his eyes. If Palmer was involved, Mac was in more danger than she'd been in months. "I'll send Commander Turner out and I'll have Webb pulling up every piece of information we can get on Palmer. Keep me informed."  
  
"Yes, sir." Harm closed his eyes, trying not to think of all the times Palmer had come after him. Palmer couldn't care less about Mac; she was just a way to get at him. If it wasn't for him, Mac would be back asleep in Washington.  
  
"Anything I can do?" Harm asked the warden after he finished the phone call.  
  
"Not yet. Did you get in touch with your commanding officer?" Harm nodded. "Well, then, I guess go get a hotel room. I have a feeling this won't be settled in one day and you look like you could use a few moments privacy. I'll call when we get anything you can help with."  
  
He got a room at a local motel and paced until there was a knock on the door. He hurriedly opened it and saw Sturgis Turner on the other side. "What happened? Any word on Mac?" Harm let his friend inside before he answered the questions.  
  
"Mac's only family is Colonel Matthew O'Hara, who stole the Declaration of Independence six years ago, my first case with her. He was sentenced to six years at Leavenworth and last night, she got a call that he was in the infirmary. When we got here, the doctors told us that he was poisoned. Palmer must have done it. I went to talk to the warden, try and locate Palmer. I never should have left them alone. I never should have done it to her."  
  
"Who's Palmer?" Turner asked, thoroughly confused.  
  
"Clark Palmer. I met him my second year with Mac, the week before she resigned. He nearly killed Bud and me. He reappeared a couple of weeks before Bud and Harriet got married, put a bomb in my apartment, took my place in court, and tried to poison the defendant. The next two times he was out, he tried to kill Jordie." Turner nodded. Harm had told him about Jordan Parker, the psychiatrist that he'd dated before Renee. "The last time, even though I was dating Renee, he didn't go after her. He sent a bloody knife to Mac. He knew that Mac was more important to me." He'd realized that almost too late. When he thought he was going to lose her in the embassy, he'd realized that she was his life. He couldn't imagine trying to do anything without her and he never wanted to try. "What am I going to do if he hurts her? Or Uncle Matt? She'd never forgive me and I'm not sure I'd forgive myself."  
  
"Don't think about it then. Admiral Chegwidden's yelling at Webb and Bobbie's standing by in case there's something she can do to help." 


End file.
